After the security campaigns caught many juveniles driving cars without a license, the future of these juveniles looks bleak because it will have a bearing on them when they want to enroll in any of the military colleges.
The Al-Rai daily has learned from security sources this driving offence automatically transforms into a ‘theft case’ which will be recorded against the juvenile for the very fact that he stole his father’s keys and drove the car without his father’s knowledge, or the will be filed against the father under the title ‘neglect of the minor’ if the incident happened with his father’s knowledge.
During the campaigns dozens of juveniles were arrested. They were caught driving their relatives’ cars without a license, in addition to committing serious.
The “Al-Rai” accompanied the traffic men during the campaign, and witnessed first hand what happened during the four-hour campaign that was led by the Assistant Director of the Department of Planning, Research, Coordination and Follow-up, Brigadier Khaled Mahmoud, and the Assistant Director for Technical Affairs Brigadier-General Sheikh Fawaz Al-Khaled.
On the sidelines of the campaign, Brigadier Khaled Mahmoud said, “The current traffic campaign, and the previous ones, come under the directives of the Traffic Sector Undersecretary, Major General Jamal Al-Sayegh, who always encourages all traffic departments, to work as a team for the benefit of citizens and residents.
The aim is to raise traffic awareness, ensure safety and prevent drivers from committing violations, whether intentionally or unintentionally.
He explained, “the campaign resulted in the issuance of 1,475 traffic violations, which varied between security and durability conditions, not wearing seat belt and the expiration of vehicle registration books and driving licenses.”
“Unfortunately, during the ongoing traffic campaigns, we arrest many violators who are found to be juveniles and do not have driving licenses, which exposes the juvenile and the guardian to legal accountability, and results in the registration of cases against the guardian, for neglecting to take care of minors,” Mahmoud added.
“Sometimes the juvenile admits that he got into the vehicle without his father’s knowledge, and this makes the juvenile liable to legal accountability, and becomes subject to registering a case of theft against him, is referred to the Juvenile Prosecution, and the court issues a verdict which usually is fine or imprisonment.
The juvenile enters the criminal record book, the vehicle is impounded and “the the truth is we do not wish that our children will be exposed to such matters that affect their future because of their recklessness or lack of supervision by their parents.”
For his part, Brigadier General Sheikh Fawaz Al-Khaled said, “We carry out traffic campaigns in vital places such as the Shuwaikh area, where we have detected many traffic violations that require the concerted efforts of citizens and residents to cooperate with traffic campaigns, by committing to repairing their vehicles and ensuring their vehicles are road worthy.”
Director of the Technical Inspection Department, Colonel Mishaal Al-Suwaiji, said the campaigns aim to control violators and reduce negative phenomena, such as fitting exhausts that make annoying sounds, driving vehicles that lack security and durability conditions, stressing that campaigns are continuing and will not stop in all governorates to monitor any traffic violations, including mobile teams that monitor vehicles neglected in residential areas.